It seemed that nothing could prevent Moroccan Hicham El Guerrouj from successfully defending his Olympic title in the 1500m in Sydney in 2000. Unbeaten over the distance for many months, the Moroccan was the overwhelming favourite. No one expected the small Kenyan Noah Ngeny, who had already shown his ability to keep up to El Guerrouj, but had never beaten him.In Sydney, Ngeny continued to sprint on the straight when the Moroccan slowed down. He passed him and won. At the age of 22, his preparation in Australia and the United States far from the high Kenyan plateaux seem to have borne fruit.